Too Little, Too Late
by teenagejustice
Summary: When one of the team dies, he leaves his best friend shattered to pieces. Rated T because I'm paranoid.


_**A/N: Hi everyone! Sorry it's been so long, but I've been super busy lately. Anyway, I hope y'all enjoy this, even though it is kinda depressing wit Robin angsting all over the place.**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own the Young Justice team, or anyone in the DC universe. No copyright infringement is intended.**_

_**Warnings: blood, suicide, mentions of cutting. Little bit of cussing.**_

* * *

_'It should be raining.'_

As if on cue, a light drizzle began to fall. The boy looked up to the dark grey sky, drops of rain falling directly in his eyes. It hurt, but he didn't care. If everything was the way it should be, he and his best friend would be outside right now, running in the rain and wrestling in the mud. Or they would be inside, talking about school or girls or their respective night lives. That's what friends do. He looked down at the fresh grave before him. In his case, what friends did.

It had all happened so fast. One minute he was there, the next he was just… gone. The boy took a deep breath. He was supposed to have all the answers, and the fact of the matter was that he did. Not that he would tell them to anyone.

The hero bowed his head, raven black hair plastered to his skull from the rain. He should have done something. '_How could I?'_ he wondered to himself._ 'He acted perfectly fine yesterday…'_

* * *

24 hours earlier

He heard a polite knock on his door. He looked up from his book and saw a grey haired man standing in his doorway. "Sir, there's someone here to see you." He said.

"Okay, they can come in. Thanks Alfred."

The other man nodded and left the doorway. He heard the older man say, "I assume you know the way, Mister West."

"Yep. Thanks Alfie!" He heard feet pounding up the stairs before he saw a red haired, energetic boy enter his room. "Hey Dick!"

Richard Grayson smiled to himself. Wally was the only one on the team who knew who he was outside the mask. Knew who Bruce was too. "Hey Wally."

Wally West jumped onto the bed. He peered curiously at the book in front of his friend. "Watcha readin'?"

"The Hunger Games. It's a pretty good book."

"Hmm." Wally sat next to him. "And why are you reading instead of playing video games with me?"

Dick closed his book. "Because not everyone enjoys having their face in a screen all the time, Kid Video." Dick looked up at his friend. He was wearing jeans and a long sleeve yellow shirt with a pair of red sneakers. His red hair was sticking up in different directions, and his emerald eyes sparkled with laughter.

"Whatever. You don't know what you're missing." Wally stood and starting pacing around the bed. One of his shirt sleeves caught on something protruding from the foot of his bed, yanking his sleeve up a little bit. Dick caught flashes of white against tanned skin. "Wally, what is that?"

Wally pulled his shirt sleeve back into place, covering up the patch of skin. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it." He then broke into a bright grin. "Wanna go get ice cream?"

"Sure!" Dick grabbed his jacket and put it on, completely forgetting about the white marks on Wally's skin.

"Race you to the bottom!" Wally shouted as he took off running down the stairs.

"No fair!" Dick raced after him, shouting into the kitchen, "Alfred, Wally and I are gonna go get ice cream. Be back soon!"

"Very well, Master Dick." But the two teenagers were already gone.

* * *

"So how's everything in the females department?"

Dick glanced up from the banana split he was eating. "Everything's perfect for me, but I have been meaning to ask you something."

"Fire away." Wally said with a mouthful of chocolate ice cream, lounging on one of the couches in the ice cream parlor.

"What's going on between you and Artemis?"

Wally choked on his ice cream. When he recovered himself he looked at the other boy. "Nothing. We're just good friends, and barely that."

"No. Zatanna and I are just good friends. There's something more like Megan and Conner between you and Artemis."

Wally avoided his gaze before giving in. "Okay, so I like her. It's not like she feels the same way."

"Sorry, Wally, but you're wrong. You clearly haven't seen the way she looks at you."

"If she likes me, than why does she get on my case so much?"

"She's countering your flirting with some of her own."

"What flirting?"

"Oh come on! The jokes, the sarcastic remarks, constantly fighting with her. Oh, and not to mention the passes you make at Megan to make her jealous. Come on, dude, everyone else sees it!"

"Okay, okay, you made your point." The red head played absently with his spoon, frowning at his ice cream.

Dick took another bite of his split. "So when are you gonna ask her out?"

Wally sighed. "I… I don't know."

* * *

_'Why?'_ The Boy Wonder thought, rain continuing to pound on his skull._ 'Why didn't he talk to me? We were like brothers in every sense of the word…'_

* * *

12 hours earlier

"Hey KF!" Robin turned the next corner, half expecting a bucket of… well, something to fall on his head. He had been looking for Wally for at least half an hour, and he was starting to get sick of it. Carrying a tray with a plate of nachos and a glass pitcher of soda, he called, "Wally if this is a practical joke, cut it out. I have food!" He rounded the next corner and saw the speedster's bedroom door open.

"Finally. Dude, I've been looking for you-" He stopped short when he saw Wally lying in costume on the floor. He set the food down on the nightstand and bent over his friend. "Wally? Why the hell are you sleeping on the floor when it's the middle of the day? Wake up!" When he didn't stir, Robin shook him a little. "Wally?" He still didn't move.

Something felt wrong. Robin turned the hero over onto his back. He was surprised when a small glass test tube rolled away from the red gloved hand that had been holding it. Dick cautiously picked it up and turned it in his hands. No liquid came out. Hesitating for a moment, he sniffed the inside of the tube, recoiling at the strong scent. Bleach. Why the hell would- oh God. Robin finally put it together. He shook Wally again, harder this time. "Wally! Come on, dude, don't do this to me!" Panic was rising in Robin's chest faster than he could control it. He felt on Kid Flash's neck for a pulse, but found none. He immediately began CPR. He was at it for fifteen minutes all by himself before he realized that there wasn't anything he could do.

Wally was gone.

Robin stood up and stared at his friend, grief, confusion, and guilt replacing panic, utter defeat running through his veins. He looked away and wiped tears from his eyes. He noticed a note on the nightstand where he had put the food and picked it up. Robin read it to himself, folding it up and put it in his belt. He was clear on what he needed to do. He softly shut the door so no one would walk in on what he was doing. Turning back to his best friend's body, Robin took out a few of his birdarangs. He absolutely hated himself for what he was about to do, but he wasn't about to let the others see this. Taking a deep breath, he knelt by Wally's body and placed the sharp end of the weapon against the speedster's abdomen. He closed his eyes and pressed harder, hearing the fabric of Kid Flash's costume tear and the blade cutting into still warm flesh. Robin pulled the weapon to him, creating a deep cut across the other boy's abdomen. He created a few other slices in the same way, then stood up, putting the bloody blades back in his belt. He would destroy them later. Blood was completely drenching Wally's clothes. Robin looked around. He needed to make a final wound. A death wound. He needed something sharp.

He spotted a sword in the corner of the room; no doubt one of Wally's souvenirs. Robin held the sword in one hand and heaved the other boy up, keeping a distance between the two of them. If what he was planning was going to work, he needed to have no blood on himself. The crimson liquid from Robin's earlier cuts poured down Wally's clothes, running and pooling on the floor. Taking another breath, he ran the sword through Wally's chest. Blood splattered on the wall, and Dick slowly eased his friend down to the floor before pulling the sword out. Blood exploded forward, but Dick tried not to look at it. He abandoned the sword next to the nightstand to make it look like someone left it behind while fleeing. Robin picked up his tray and left the room, closing the door behind him. He walked to the other end of the hallway, waiting until he heard footsteps from the other end before he started walking. When he turned the corner he saw Superboy. Perfect for what he had in mind.

"Hey Superboy."

"Hey Robin." Conner grabbed a nacho off the plate.

"You don't happen to know where Wally is, do you?"

"Probably in his room like everyone else. Well, see you." Conner went to his room while Dick went down to Wally's door and knocked on it for the sake of appearances. He then opened door and walked in.

Dick forced himself to slip on one of the many rivers of blood that was running across the floor. The food on his tray went flying everywhere, the glass object broke behind him. He looked up and saw his friend's body again. Dick scooted back against the wall, blood now covering his costume and small pieces of glass penetrating the Kevlar in his costume, cutting into his back. He screamed, "Wally!"

Instantly he heard footsteps on the metal floor as he continued to scream Wally's name. Every emotion that Dick had forced down now bubbled to the surface. He felt tears begin the stream down his face as he heard more feet pounding outside the door. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Superboy whip around the corner and nearly gag from the overpowering smell of blood. His blue eyes darted from the body of the speedster on the floor to the younger boy in the corner, who was still staring at his friend's body in shock. Conner was by his side in a instant, gently stroking the other boy's raven hair in a brotherly way. For the first time he noticed how badly the other hero was shaking. "Robin." He muttered sympathetically. He pulled the other boy into his arms, Wally's crimson blood running from Robin's costume down Conner's bare arms.

Kaldur was the next in the room. No surprise, since they were in the boy's wing. He had hit the alarm on his in the room, so the girls would be here any minute. The Atlantian's eyes scanned the room, pausing painfully on the speedster's body. He glanced at the bloody sword on the ground, then roved to the two boys next to him. Trying to keep a clear head, he walked toward Wally's body, blood squishing under his bare feet. He reached down and touched Wally's neck, feeling for a pulse. Nothing. He glanced up at Connor. He was still holding Robin in his arms, allowing the younger boy to sob into his chest. He met Kaldur's eyes, asking a silent question. Kaldur shook his head.

Connor resisted the urge to gently release himself from Robin's grip, go to the gym, and punch the crap out of something. But he couldn't do that anyway. Robin was holding him in a death grip, like he was afraid that if he released Connor for one second he would lose the Kryptonian too. Connor gently rocked Robin back and forth, murmuring things that the Atlantian couldn't hear but apparently calmed Robin down just a bit. Kaldur looked at Robin sympathetically. He had always been so strong, it was painful to see him broken like this. Aqualad quietly crossed the room and knelt next to Robin, placing a comforting hand on the other boy's trembling back. He was a bit surprised when he felt stubble under his fingers, and when he looked closer he saw the bits of glass imbedded in Robin's back. Blood was slowly trickling out of the puncture wounds. "Robin, you're…"

Now Superboy noticed the glass as the three boys heard multiple pairs of feet outside. The three girls entered the room and were about to ask what was going on, before they saw Wally on the floor and Robin sobbing into Superboy's chest with Kaldur next to him. M'gann stepped forward, trying to block out the rampant emotions that were rolling off the boys. "Kaldur, what's going on?"

Aqualad glanced at Superboy before standing and taking a shaky breath. "Contact Batman. We need help right now."

* * *

Connor, M'gann, and Dick were all sitting in the kitchen together. Kaldur'ahm, Zatanna, and Artemis had taken Kid Flash's body downstairs to the med bay while Superboy and Miss Martian tended to the little bird. Dick had pulled his mask off, but Connor and M'gann didn't really care. The poor kid was still in shock, and the glass embedded in his back didn't exactly help. Superboy had him bending over the table while he stood behind Robin's chair and used a pair of tweezers to extract the glass shards from his bare back (they had taken the top piece of his costume off to make it easier for Connor). When he was done he sat down next to Robin as the other boy straightened up. Megan walked over with a wet washcloth in her hand and started gently cleaning the wounds on his back. "Robin, do you want something to eat?"

When he didn't respond, M'gann glanced at Connor before asking again, "Robin?"

"I'm not hungry."

Connor flinched at the other boy's hollow voice. It was so unlike the lively, energetic Robin that he saw as his little brother. Of course, that Robin had never found his best friend's dead body before. Connor put a hand on Dick's shoulder, and wordlessly pulled him into an embrace. The younger boy clung to Connor like he was the last thing on Earth. Megan put the bloody washcloth on the kitchen counter and knelt next the the Boy Wonder, joining the hug.

That's the way the League found them. Artemis's panicked voice coming over the phone talking about Kid Flash and Robin and saying things like "There's a crap load of blood!" sent the League rocketing over with no questions asked. The last thing they expected to be met with was an empty room. They had checked a few rooms before venturing down to the kitchen, where they saw Connor, M'gann, and Dick all huddled together, blood all over the table next to them.

The Dark Knight resisted the powerful urge to run to his little bird. J'onn was the first to speak. "M'gann."

She looked up at her uncle, and everyone in the room could see in her face that something was wrong. She said something to Robin before standing and softly putting a kiss on Connor's forehead. She walked toward her uncle, but instead of answering any questions when she reached him, she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest, crying quietly. J'onn glanced at his teammates, not needing to voice his shock at his niece's actions. Wonder Woman and Black Canary tried to coax Megan to talk, but right then the other three members of the team walked in. Artemis and Zatanna were talking in low tones, and Kaldur was walking behind them with his head down. At first they ignored the League, instead opting to comfort their youngest member. Then they went to their respective mentors, looking for some kind of reassurance. Green Arrow and Zatarra could tell that their protégés had been crying, and Aquaman could see the broken look in Kaldur's eyes and the faint traces of blood on his shirt. Green Arrow and Zatarra took their partners into their arms, Artemis and Zatanna crying their eyes out into the mens' shoulders. Arthur put a hand on Kaldur's shoulder, and the younger Atlantean allowed himself a few tears.

By this time the other Leaguers were panicking on the inside, but Batman, Superman, and Flash were still watching the two teenage boys at the kitchen table. Batman was wondering what would cause his little Dickie to break down this way. Superman was wondering when this new side to Connor had emerged. Flash was wondering why Superboy was comforting Robin instead of Kid Flash.

And then it clicked. The blood that was everywhere. The silence of the team. The tears coming from every teenager in the room.

The reason his nephew wasn't there.

"No." he whispered. Connor glanced behind him, tears glistening in his blue eyes. That was all the proof Barry Allen needed. Without a word he raced out of the room, heading down to the infirmary. Superman followed, but stopped when he saw the older speedster on his knees, weeping over his nephew's body. Clark left as quietly as possible, and, when he got back to the room, mouthed to the other Leaguers, "Wally is dead."

One by one, realization hit. Hard. Mentors hugged their protégés tighter to their chests, murmuring quiet words that they could only hope would help. Batman and Superman both went to the other two teenagers, worry rising fast in their chests. Clark put a soft hand on his clone's shoulder. "Connor?"

When Superboy glanced up at him, Clark's stomach rolled over and died. True, aside from training he never saw the boy much, but he had never seen the boy so… broken before. Not even after their failed training simulation had he seen the trauma that was now barely hidden behind sky blue eyes. Connor slowly eased himself out of Robin's grip, assuring the younger teen that he was right next to him. Connor stood and faced Superman, and the older Kryptonian pulled him into his arms. "I'm sorry, Connor. I'm so, so sorry."

Superboy buried his face in Superman's chest, his eyes burning. No. Do not cry. Crying would mean that he accepted it. But hot tears were already streaming down his face.

Then Batman stepped forward. The Dark Knight put a hand on his son's back and knelt down so he was on eye level with his little bird. "Dick?"

Dick looked up at his father. Bruce's heart did a backflip and clenched in his chest. Everything that he had seen in the young boy's eyes the night he had watched his parents plummet to their deaths had resurfaced, only magnified by the anguish of finding his best friend dead in his room. Bruce couldn't even imagine the inner turmoil that Dick was barely hiding behind his fractured blue eyes. Bruce slid the cowl off his face and clutched his son fiercely to his chest. The younger boy sobbed violently into his mentor's chest as the older vigilante stroked his raven hair. "Shh, Dickie. It's going to be okay."

Dick whimpered quietly before speaking to Bruce, reverting back to his first language. "I-am încercat, Bruce. Am încercat atât de greu, dar nu a putut-l salveze."_ 'I-I tried, Bruce. I tried so hard, but I couldn't save him.'_

"Este bine acum, meu putin pasare. Sunt chiar aici, acesta este mergi la a fi bine." _'It's okay now, my little bird. I'm right here, it's going to be okay.'_

"El a fost doar culcat pe podea! El este mort… şi este vina mea." _'He was just lying on the floor! He's dead… and it's my fault.'_

"Dickie." Bruce angled his son's face up so he could see Dick's teary sapphire eyes. "Acest lucru nu a fost vina ta. Tu nu a putut au văzut-o venind, şi nu a putut au oprit-o. Fiul, nu dau vina-te, pentru acest lucru. Nu a fost vina ta."_ 'This was not your fault. You couldn't have seen it coming, and you couldn't have stopped it. Son, don't blame yourself for this. It wasn't your fault.'_

Robin buried his face in Bruce's chest. "Îmi pare rău, tati. Îmi pare rău." _'I'm sorry, Daddy. I'm sorry.'_

Bruce rocked his son back and forth.

"Acesta este în regulă, putin pasare."_ 'It's okay, little bird.'_

* * *

Bruce was wrong. It was his fault that Wally was dead. He had seen the marks on Wally's skin. _'Why didn't I press him?'_ The Boy Wonder asked himself. _'The scars should have tipped me off that he was cutting. If I had just said something to him or Barry or Bruce, this never would have happened.'_ Dick looked at the gravestone before him.

Wally West. Beloved Nephew. Cherished Brother. Honored Friend.

Fresh tears fell from Richard's eyes, the note Wally had left playing through his head. Those words had been forever burned in his mind even as he had watched the flames in the fireplace at the Manor lick them. Words of anger, regret, and a soul burdened by duty. Wally had been so sure that Robin would find him that he'd actually addressed the note to him. He had apologized to the younger boy for leaving him, and to go to Roy or Bruce or Alfred for help. He asked Robin to burn the note and never tell anyone the truth. The truth of how Wally West died.

The service for Wally had ended hours ago, but he hadn't left the gravesite. Roy had tried to stay with him, but Dick had told his to go ahead, that he would be along. A new pair of feet treaded over the wet autumn leaves and came to a stop behind the boy. "Dick."

Robin heard his father, but didn't turn, instead opting to listen. "I examined Wally's body. All the wounds were made post mortum."

Bruce took a step forward. "Dick, Wally wasn't murdered, was he?"

Dick swallowed hard and shook his head vigorously, more tears streaming down his cheeks. He felt a warm hand on his shoulder, and turned to face his father.

Bruce knelt down so he was on eye level with the teen and gripped his shoulders gently. "Dick, did Wally kill himself?"

Dick nodded before breaking down completely. Bruce crushed the sobbing boy to his chest, letting his son weep everything he felt into his shirt, whispering words of comfort in Romanian. But Bruce's words did little to ease the guilt in Dick's chest.

He had done too little too late.

* * *

_**A/N: If it seems a little rushed at the end, that's probably because it was. I write thing like this all the time, so yeah, my brain's not a nice place to be. I have another one with this pairing only Robin is the one who dies and instead of drinking bleach, he drowns himself. Sorry if the characters were OOC, but I was trying to bring out everyone's sappy side. I also love big brother Connor.**_

_**Oh, and for anyone who doesn't already know, Romani is Dick Grayson's first language, but I couldn't find a translator, so I used Romanian as a substitute. Batman is Batman, so he has learned it too.**_

_**Please review!**_


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